Adventure Comics Vol 1 38
Supporting Characters: * Antagonists: * Count Guniff ** Guniff's band Other Characters: * Andre Duval * Intelligence Commissioner Locations: * ** Items: * Plans for Vehicles: * French 2-engine military plane | StoryTitle2 = Inspector Kent: "Introducing the Raven" | Synopsis2 = Huge planes thunder through the dark skies, like hawks flying towards their prey, they fly over the fortified city of Kurtzburg where they suddenly release their cargo, bombs. Inside the office of the War Department, a cloaked figure is at work opening the vault, unnoticed in the confusion caused by the air raid. When morning comes, the newspapers are ablaze with the story of the attack. Inspector Kent of Scotland Yard discusses the reports with the Chief. He has his own theory, that the air raid only served as a diversion for the real goal, which was likely to steal the secret documents to the Volker War Plans. And it seems also likely that his old nemesis, criminal mastermind the Raven, was behind it all. The Chief then receives a call from the Intelligence Office, requesting Scotland Yard's help after finding "definitive proof" of the Raven's involvement in the war-scare. A half-hour later, Kent meets with Captain Sutter of the intelligence office, who briefs him on the mission they have set up. Kent is to meet with their female agent, K-4, at a tavern while in the guise of an old seaman. She will be there dressed as a waitress and hand him a menu that contains further instructions written inside. The Captain reminds Inspector Kent that the retrieval of the plans in this case took top priority over all else. At half past midnight, Kent stumbles into the tavern in his old seaman disguise and takes his seat by the wall. Just as planned, a bar-maid approaches and offers him a menu. When he opens it up, he finds a message written inside telling him to wait at Dock 13. There, Kent is left waiting for more than an hour and a half before the female agent breathlessly dashes up to him. She has been followed by some of the Raven's men, who now move in to attack the Inspector, Kent fights off the ruthless thugs. K-4 explains that the Raven's hideout is hidden below them, shows him the way. The water level directly beneath the dock is, oddly, only knee-deep, and after only a bit of wading, Agent K-4 and Inspector Kent reach a big metal door, which is easily opened by pressing a switch hidden on the rock wall beside it. Inside they follow a damp, narrow passage to another door, which according to K-4, leads to the meeting room. Voices are heard within as high ranking officers under the Raven's military organization have a conference over the plans. Kent bursts through the door with gun in hand and grabs the plans and documents right off the table in front of the dumbstruck men. By the time they snap to and draw their own firearms, Kent has gone, closing the door and barricading it with a block of wood. A few seconds later, Kent and the girl dash for the exit. A small fishing boat had been left abandoned near the dock, so Kent and K-4 set on board and sail briskly down the river! The next day, Inspector Kent and Agent K-4 sit in Captain Sutter's office after safely returning the Volker War Plans. With the primary mission now complete, the conversation turns to the capture of the Raven. | Appearing2 = Featured Characters: * Supporting Characters: * Agent K-4 Antagonists: * The Raven Other Characters: * Captain Sutter Locations: * Kurtzburg * ** War Department Items: * Volker War Plans | StoryTitle3 = Federal Men: "The Killing of Judge Thompson" | Synopsis3 = A strolling pedestrian comes across a dead body on the sidewalk. It's Federal Judge Thompson, with a cord around his neck! Steve Carson is called out to the scene to investigate and search for clues to the identity of the killer. Clutched in the judge's hand was a small bit of paper with a single name written on it: Stanley Gaynor, a prominent lawyer and Thompson's opponent in the race for re-election. The police give Steve the address to Gaynor's home so he can question him about the murder. Before he leaves, he asks the Chief to look something up for him. Stan Gaynor seems genuinely surprised to learn of his rival's murder, and insists that he had nothing to do with it. A man bursts through the door followed by a police officer, accusing Gaynor of murdering the judge and being a liar. He introduces himself to Steve as Harry Rawlinson, a friend of Thompson, whom he believes Gaynor killed out of fear that he'd lose the election. Steve brings both men back to the police station for questioning. The Chief pulls him off to one side to hand him a report, with a photo attached, the information he had requested earlier. Steve informs Gaynor and Rawlinson that, interestingly, the cord and knots used on Judge Thompson were identical to the kind that were used in a murder ten years ago. The criminal was a man named Benny Saunders, who received a life sentence from Thompson, and was reported to have sworn vengeance. He escaped from prison only a few years ago, and Steve knew that he had altered his appearance slightly in that time and proceeded to gain the unsuspecting judge's friendship, until he could lure him into the alley on some pretext so that he could kill him. All this could only mean that Harry Rawlinson was really Benny Saunders! Benny tries to escape, but Steve lands a flying punch that subdues him enough so that the police can take him into custody. Steve reminds Harry a.k.a. Benny, that for escaping and murdering a government official, he'll get the death sentence this time around. | Appearing3 = Featured Characters: * Supporting Characters: * Antagonists: * Benny Saunders, as Harry Rawlinson Other Characters: * Judge Thompson * Stanley Gaynor * Police Chief | StoryTitle4 = Tod Hunter, Junglemaster: "The God of the Ruby Eye, Part 11" | Synopsis4 = Tod Hunter and Torog were facing the old magician's squad of bowmen on the dock of the underground river. Strangely though, the bowmen seem to be shooting their arrows without them making a single sound. This tips Tod off that they are illusions, conjured up by Dante in an attempt to scare them off. As long as Torog's army ignore the bowmen, they can simply walk right through them. Dante appears on a platform above them, with Tamir being held over the edge, threatening to drop her if they did not leave. Tod stands under the balcony when Dante is blustering, and so the wizard does not see him right away. Dante starts to step toward the girl, as Torog pleads for his daughter's life, and then suddenly, Tod leaps over the railing, and stands between Dante and Tamir! With the Symian Palace back under the rule of Torog, and the evil wizard locked up, Tod decides to continue searching for his friends Gail and Tommy and is given an escort back to the jungle. Tod retraces his steps as best as he can in the darkness of night until the glow of a campfire catches his eye. Two rough looking men are sitting around the flame, and the conversation they have is of special interest to Tod as it is about a "girl and her old man" that they came across. Tod leaps over the fire as one of the men goes for his gun, immediately stopped by Tod's quick strike. As he is tying their hands behind their backs he notices a crumpled sheet of paper that when unfolded, turns out to be a wanted poster with the faces of the two men printed on them! ::Murder Robbery and Rape Tod begins to worry. What have his friends wandered into, and where are they now?? | Appearing4 = Featured Characters: * Supporting Characters: * Torog Antagonists: * Dante Other Characters: * Tamir Locations: * Symian Palace | Writer5_1 = Alec Stockton | Penciler5_1 = Alec Stockton | Inker5_1 = Alec Stockton | StoryTitle5 = Don Coyote: "A Playboy In King Arthur's Court, Part 2" | Synopsis5 = Don Coyote and his new friend take over the kingdom. | Appearing5 = Featured Characters: * Supporting Characters: * Antagonists: * The King Locations: * ** Concepts: * | StoryTitle6 = Steve Malone: "The Armored Truck Robbery" | Synopsis6 = Three men in a black sedan are waiting on the side of the road. An armored truck starts to pass them by and the men wait until the unloading has started, then make their move, with Tommy guns, mowing down the bank security officers and city cops. They they clean out the truck's contents and speed off in their car. A call on the radio is made to District Attorney Steve Malone. By tracking the bandit's movements on a map, Steve and his assistant Happy, are able to tell State Troopers which highways to search. Within minutes a report comes back that one of the patrol cars has spotted the sedan, heading north towards the pier. Steve tells Happy to prepare the hydroplane, while he phones the Coast Guard, because he suspects that the bandits are going to try and steal a launch, that would take them to a waiting ship. If the ship then takes them beyond the twelve mile limit, they'll be out of the police's jurisdiction, and Steve wanted to ensure that didn't happen. Happy pilots the seaplane over the ocean, to a freighter anchored ten miles off shore. The pontoon swoops down low so that Steve can dive into the water, then Happy proceeds to fly the plane around on the ship's port side, and acts as a distraction for the crewmen on board, while Steve climbs up the starboard side without being noticed. Steve sneaks into the wheelhouse and knocked out the ship's skipper, to get to the engine's ignition wires, which he pulls out one by one to stop the engine. Too late, he realizes that the bandit leader is behind him holding a gun. Steve is tied up while the crewmen reconnect the wires and begin to steer the ship away from the national border. But to his good fortune, the Coast Guard finally catches up to them at that moment and forces the ship to halt. The robbers are arrested and the money from the armored truck is recovered and given back to the security guards. | Appearing6 = Featured Characters: * Supporting Characters: * Happy Antagonists: * Spunk * Hank * Gypsy * Joe * Tony * Unnamed bandit Vehicles: * amphibious airplane * freight steamship | StoryTitle8 = Captain Desmo: "Battle With Tartars" | Synopsis8 = Captain Desmo and his party, weary and worn from their adventure in the Himalayan tropical valley, return to the village of Delhor, in Nephul, where they had left their plane. As soon as they arrive on the outskirts of the village, they can hear gunshots ring out, and men and women yelling. Tartars are attacking the villagers with rifles and machine guns, outmatching the antiquated weapons of the villagers. The Elder directs his men while the women tend to the wounded. The village is all but lost to the invaders and the Elder is about to give the word to flee, when up above, behind a boulder, with guns, are Captain Desmo and Gabby, aiding the villagers. The Tartars fall quickly against the new threat, and soon beat a fast retreat to reorganize their forces. Desmo and Gabby walk down to meet the thankful villagers and their elder, who is surprised and happy to see them safe and sound. That's when they notice one of their party is missing... Marie! A villager runs up to the elder to report the sighting of a young white woman being taken by the Tartar chieftain into the hills. Desmo mounts a horse provided by the Elder, and rides off after their friend. On the rocky trail ahead, the Chieftain is leading his fair captive up into his mountain hideout. Marie's hands are bound behind her as he leads both of their steeds along the path. Suddenly a shout from behind momentarily halts the Tartar chief, turning, he sees Captain Desmo racing up towards them. The Chieftain goads his and Marie's horses into a gallop in an attempt to escape, but Desmo manages to ease up alongside the Tartar and tackle him. The two men struggle on the ground, bringing them dangerously close to a precipice. That's when fate takes a bad turn for the Chieftain, as he pulls out a knife and began swinging it at Captain Desmo, he loses his balance, and plummets off the edge of the cliff, to his death far below. Back at the village, the Elder thanks the Captain and his companions for all their help in subduing the attackers, and the entire village waves goodbye as the small plane takes off for some new adventure. | Appearing8 = Featured Characters: * Supporting Characters: * Gabby McGuire Antagonists: * Tartar Chief ** Tartars Other Characters: * Village Elder ** Villagers * Marie Gordon Locations: * ** Nephul Territory *** Delhor Village Vehicles: * Desmo's airplane | StoryTitle9 = Tom Brent: "Mystery of the Exploding Ships" | Synopsis9 = The Maritime Commission has chosen Tom Brent to uncover the secret behind four ships mysteriously exploding out on the ocean. To find out who's behind the vicious plot, Tom disguises himself as an old derelict and enters a pub out by the docks to gather evidence. There, a liquored-up seaman nicknamed "Spider" is bragging to his buddies about his involvement with the explosions. Tom begins to pull the crooked fellow aside to ask him more about the "blow-ups" and to see if he can infiltrate his way into their operation, when a stranger steps between them and leans over Spider in a friendly manner. The man leaves, and a few moments later Spider slumps over the table in death. After seeing this, Tom suspects the stranger from before and steps outside to pick up his trail, but instead two thuggish figures grab him and take Tom to see Vic Gano, a man who makes shady, water-front deals. Vic is at first suspicious of Tom's motives, but with his natural gift of persuasion, Tom convinces him that he's genuinely interested in joining their operation. He is taken to an apartment building in the wealthy part of town where Vic leads him into a room and starts talking to a blank wall about his interest in joining. A voice then sounds from the other side and tells Tom that he is to go to the Maria Docks in two days for his first job. Tom notes that the voice is very feminine. A woman living the high life, he deduces from the apartment's atmosphere, she is most likely attending all the social functions in the area. The following day, in his normal attire, Tom Brent visits the Colonel and requests an invitation to the party he is throwing tonight in the hopes that the woman whose voice he heard would be there as well. The party is full of aristocrats and entrepreneurs who, aside from the Colonel's daughter, Jean, Tom had never seen before. Suddenly, all the eyes in the room turned to behold a dazzling woman, with an air of elegance around her, walk through the entryway. The Colonel introduces Dian Towers to Tom, who gets a funny feeling about her in the back of his mind, and decides to ask for a dance, which she accepts. As they speak through the music, each seems to feel that the other had a familiar voice to them. Then Tom remembers the other night, could she be the boss of the exploding ship operation? The following day, he meets up with Miss Towers in her private booth at a high class restaurant where she introduces him to her associate, who happens to be Vic Gano! He immediately recognizes Tom as the old man that he had employed two days ago, and tells Dian that he's a spy! She summons her two thugs to grab hold of Tom, and leads him to a waiting boat, which she and Vic are planning to take to the next ship due out of port. They force Tom to steer, threatening to shoot if he doesn't comply. Tom remembers this harbor well and knows of a reef, nearby, and almost invisible in the waves. He crashes right onto it, and the launch's bow is torn off, sending Tom and the two criminals into the water, where they remain afloat until a government boat arrives on the scene. Tom stands in the Colonel's office again, answering questions and giving his report of Dian Towers and Vic Gano's plan to sink ships and then salvage them for parts to sell. But thanks to Tom Brent, they would be living out the rest of their days behind bars. | Appearing9 = Featured Characters: * Supporting Characters: * Maritime Commission Antagonists: * Spider * Vic Gano * Dian Towers ** her two thugs * Loo Other Characters: * The Colonel * Jean Locations: * Waterfront ** Maria Docks * Hang Kow | Writer10_1 = Tom Hickey | Penciler10_1 = Tom Hickey | Inker10_1 = Tom Hickey | StoryTitle10 = Skip Schuyler: "The Rebel Pancho Velez" | Synopsis10 = Skip Schuyler, in a large cargo plane, was sent to help the South American Republic of Vendazia track down a rebel group's source of arms and ammo, and to capture the rebel leader, Pancho Velez. At the landing zone, he is met by a pair of South Americans, claiming to be sent by the President to escort him; they usher him into their impressive car and whisk him away. After at least an hour, Skip suspects something is wrong. The area they are in is mountainous and far past the city limits. He speaks up to ask his "escorts" when he would get to meet President Mercaldi, the man sitting beside him responds that he was being taken to meet the soon-to-be President, Pancho Velez, a.k.a. the leader of the revolution! They drive out onto a large clearing on a plateau that overlooks a valley. Several rough stone houses line the dirt path, with the vehicle coming to a halt in front of the largest of the homes. Skip is forcibly led inside by his two kidnappers, and presented before Pancho Velez, a grungy middle-aged man who gloats over Skip's capture. On their leader's orders, the guards force Skip to sit down in a chair so they could tie him up to ensure he can't escape once Velez starts administering the lashes. The bull-whip cracks across the American's face, creating many welts and scars, continuing until Velez's arm grows tired. By then, Skip is only semi-conscious and in a lot of pain, so Velez decides to let him sit for a while, as he goes outside to discuss his plans with the others. Working fast once he is alone, Skip finds that the chair he was tied to was flimsy enough to break away if he exerts enough pressure. When that was done, all that was left is to unbind his arms. A candle on the table gives him an idea, with his mouth he grabs a match and strikes it against the rough wall to light it. He then lights the candle with the burning match and holds his ropes over the flame. Within a few minutes, he successfully burns the rope in two, finally freeing his arms. Skip finds a gun that someone had carelessly left in a holster hanging from the wall and arms himself. Through the keyhole of the door he sees Velez speaking to his men, and beside him was some one else whom Skip recognizes. It's a member of the President's trusted Cabinet, Pedro Garcia! He us apparently a supporter of Velez's revolution and has betrayed President Mercaldi to help with the planning of the imminent attack. Skip has heard enough. He bursts through the door to Velez's meeting room and points his gun threateningly at the rebel leader and his men. Forcing Garcia and Velez to one side, Skip tells the other rebels to get in the closet and lock the door. After that, he takes Garcia and Velez to the car and ties them up in the back, then drives back down to the city, to deliver his two conspirators to the President. | Appearing10 = Featured Characters: * Antagonists: * Pancho Velez * Pedro Garcia * Jose Bradna Other Characters: * President Escobar Mercaldi Locations: * ** | StoryTitle11 = Rusty and His Pals: "The Pirate Ship, Part 13" | Synopsis11 = A small lifeboat carrying Long Sin, Steve's foe, draws near the island. On the captain's orders, the small crew drag the boat up onto the shore and Long Sin steps out onto the sandy beach. He points to a light through the trees, where a residence may be. But first, as the Captain points out to him, they'll need to hide the box of opium somewhere, so that they wouldn't be caught with it. At Long Sin's suggestion, he orders the crew to dig a hole in the ground deep enough to bury the box in until they can come back for it. But the men glower at them, finally having had enough of taking orders from an untrustworthy Chinaman and a greedy Captain. They declare a mutiny, and one of them moves toward Long Sin with a murderous glint in his eye. Long Sin reacts by calmly dodging him and then throwing a knife directly into the crewman's throat, which kills him. The others are shocked at his quick movements and deadly aim, so they agree, for now, to continue following orders. Meanwhile, back at the house, Steve still has Ichabod Slade, the smuggler kingpin, and his henchmen, along with the woman called Duchess tied up in the living room. He sends Rusty outside to get a glass of water from the pump, while he thinks about what to do with them. A glimmer of hope appears in Slade's eyes when he notices the face of a sinister Chinaman glancing through the window. Soon after, Steve is surprised by a familiar voice from behind him, and judging from the look of terror on Specs and Tubby's faces, he has a good idea who it is. Turning, he sees Long Sin and his goons standing in the entrance with guns. Acting instinctively, Steve fires his pistol at the Chinese criminal, the bullet grazing his hand. Long Sin's men rush Steve, who fights back until he can't fight any more, and is knocked unconscious by a blow to the head. Ichabod Slade is set free after talking to Long Sin about his smuggling business, and how it could benefit them both by joining forces. And they plan on marking their partnership by killing Steve Carter and the children! Duchess speaks up then, telling Slade that murder was never part of the deal that she signed up for, which angers him, but before he can reprimand her, his other henchman, Hunch, notices for the first time that the boy, Rusty, wasn't among the captives. Long Sin orders some of his own men to go out into the woods to look for the boy, while he and his new partner get acquainted. Duchess is left in charge of guarding Steve and the boys, with the warning that betrayal would be her death. She however, is finally beginning to open her eyes to Slade's wicked ways and, once she is left alone with the captives, starts to untie Steve's ropes. Neither of them notice the shadowy figure coming up behind them. | Appearing11 = Featured Characters: * * Specs * Tubby Supporting Characters: * Steve Carter Antagonists: * Long Sin * The Captain ** his crew * Ichabod Slade ** his gang * Hunch Other Characters: * Duchess * Alfred P. Forrest Items: * box of opium | StoryTitle12 = Anchors Aweigh: "Wang Ku of Shanghai" | Synopsis12 = Lieutenant Commander Don Kerry and his pal Red Murphy are leading a detail of sailors from the U.S. battleship anchored in the harbor of Shanghai. They are attempting to rescue two American oil men who have been kidnapped by the criminal, Wang Ku, and taken to his hideout somewhere in the foothills outside the city, where Don and Red now lead their detachment. Red is sent ahead of the group to scout out the land for any type of outpost being used by Wang Ku. By following short-cuts through the swamps, Red leaves the column far behind, armed with his rifle and a bayonet. He suddenly drops to the ground after sighting two Chinese brigands through the brush. He overhears them talking about a planned ambush on the detachment, and now needs to warn Don about this! First, he knocks out the astonished Chinese before they can utter a sound, then takes off, back the way he came, hoping to reach his friend in time! But the sailors have already fallen into the trap! Wang Ku's men outnumber Don's, though the sailors fight bravely against the overwhelming odds. Red watches helplessly from a low cliff as the group are taken captive, and stealthily follows behind when they are taken back to Wang Ku's lair, a small camp hidden in the mountain brush. Red Murphy waits until nightfall before making his move. In the darkness, he creeps up behind and subdues the lone sentry guarding the prisoners. Then, with his bayonet, he slices through the bonds of the sailors, but his friend Don Kerry is nowhere in sight. Silently leading the band down the path until they get far enough away from the camp to hold a council on what to do next. Red is told that Wang took Don away with him to a small ship anchored in the bay. After several hours of weary plodding, the marching men stumble across the shore of the bay. Wang Ku's junk is silhouetted in the moonlight, on the horizon not too far off, so with an automatic and a flashlight tucked under his shirt, Red swims with long strokes to the waiting boat. Another sentry on deck has his back turned to Red, providing an easy mark to be knocked unconscious. After hiding the body, Red uses the flashlight to send a signal in Morse code to the sailors back on land. He then slips below deck and locates Don in the hold. Freeing him, Red tells his friend that he sent a signal to the crew on shore to call the Navy flagship, and give them the coordinates of the boat, and blow it out of the water, while Wang Ku was still on board. Together, they run up on deck and jump into the water, just as the battleship arrives. A moment later the ship's guns fire at the junk, tearing it apart in a fiery explosion. Later, when all are back aboard the flagship, Don and Red are commended for their success, and are told that the two Americans were released after Wang Ku's death. For now it seems, their adventure in China comes to an end. | Appearing12 = Featured Characters: * Supporting Characters: * Red Murphy Antagonists: * Wang Ku ** his many henchmen Other Characters: * U.S. sailors * two American oil men Locations: * ** *** surrounding foothills and swamps Vehicles: * U.S. battleship | Editor1_1 = Vincent Sullivan | Writer1_1 = Ed Winiarski | Writer2_1 = George Newman | Writer3_1 = Jerry Siegel | Writer4_1 = Jim Chambers | Writer6_1 = Gardner Fox | Writer8_1 = Ed Winiarski | Writer9_1 = Jim Chambers | Writer11_1 = Bob Kane | Writer12_1 = Fred Guardineer | Penciler1_1 = Ed Winiarski | Penciler2_1 = George Newman | Penciler3_1 = Joe Shuster | Penciler4_1 = Jim Chambers | Penciler6_1 = Don Lynch | Penciler8_1 = Ed Winiarski | Penciler9_1 = Jim Chambers | Penciler11_1 = Bob Kane | Penciler12_1 = Fred Guardineer | Inker1_1 = Ed Winiarski | Inker2_1 = George Newman | Inker3_1 = Joe Shuster | Inker4_1 = Jim Chambers | Inker6_1 = Don Lynch | Inker8_1 = Ed Winiarski | Inker9_1 = Jim Chambers | Inker11_1 = Bob Kane | Inker12_1 = Fred Guardineer | Colourist1_1 = | Letterer1_1 = | Notes = * This issue Adventure Events by Terry Gilkison returns, after being absent last issue. * This issue Cotton Carver is absent, but returns next issue. * After this issue, Don Coyote by Alec Stockton skips next issue, and returns in Adventure Comics #40. * Last issue for Inspector Kent, a character who usually appeared in Detective Comics. ** Despite the title, this story does not introduce the Raven, who was established as a formidable super-criminal back in Detective Comics #19, in which he stole a top-secret invisibility formula. ** At this story's end, The Raven is still at large. * Rusty's Pal Steve gets head-konked unconscious, for the 1st time. * Last issue for Tod Hunter. The cliffhanger is never resolved. The evil wizard Dante from the last few episodes isn't even defeated, he just vanishes between panels. Tod is shot trying to escape in the final panel of the story. * Also appearing in this issue of Adventure Comics were: ** "Emergency Case" (text story) by Jack Anthony ** Fantastic Facts ** Professor Doolittle by Bob Kane ** Woe Is Me by Charles Biro | Trivia = | Recommended = | Links = }}